PIERRE, S.D. (AP) - Pierre’s new high school trap team is ready to kick off state high school trap league’s inaugural season.
The Pierre team is one of seven high school teams that have signed on to the new league and accounts for more than a quarter - around 65 - of the roughly 200 students that have signed on to participate statewide.
The team met Saturday, April 16 at the Pierre Izaak Walton League clubhouse for a community open house and shooting clinic, the Pierre Capital Journal (https://bit.ly/1XJcYyh ) reported. The team also was on hand to help officially dedicate the clubhouse’s newly renovated trap range.
That Saturday was the fourth time members of the team have gathered to practice together said Pat Ludwig, one of the seven coaches for the team. The young shooters have been getting better during each session, he said.
“Day one things were a little chaotic,” Ludwig said. “By the time we’re done, hopefully the kids will have everything down.”
One thing that should help the team on their way to that goal was a shooting clinic led by world champion trap shooters Matt and Foster Bartholow and their father Bud. The Bartholows hail from Rapid City and have been shooting competitively for 15 years. They were invited to Pierre by Dana Edwards, one of the men who helped organize the Pierre trap team.
“We jumped at the opportunity,” Matt Bartholow said.
Growing up he and his brother didn’t have an organized high school team to shoot with. They picked up a flyer for a five-week course and never looked back.
“We found we were pretty good at it,” Matt Bartholow said.
Both brothers have won multiple awards at the Grand American trap shooting competition in Sparta Ill. Foster was a singles world champion and Matt has earned a double world champion title.
They each shoot roughly 70,000 rounds per year and love every minute of it.
“It’s really fun,” Matt Bartholow said. “The people in trap shooting are some the best in the world.”
It’s that passion for the sport that the Bartholows were hoping to inspire in the Pierre trap team.
“We’re not just here to teach the kids how to shoot better,” Bud Bartholow said.
The Bartholows said trap shooting teaches kids gun safety, discipline, respect and how to compete. All of which are good life skills.
Another positive is that trap shooting isn’t a gender specific sport, Bud Bartholow said. Boys and girls will be competing side by side on the same teams.
“It’s not just a game for boys or girls,” Bud Bartholow said.
The Pierre team will be divided into seven sub teams each with their own coach. The sub teams will shoot at the Izaak Walton League through the week in April and May. Their scores will be tallied against the other schools. In June an optional state tournament will be held in Aberdeen.
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Information from: Pierre Capital Journal, https://www.capjournal.com
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